1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a boat ramp, and more particularly, a gangplank system for facilitating safe boarding and disembarking from a boat.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous innovations for boat ladder devices have been provided in the prior art that will be described. Even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, however, they differ from the present invention.
A FIRST EXAMPLE, U.S. Pat. No. 3,052,896, Issued on Sep. 11, 1962, to Beach teaches a boat having a cockpit and a bow compartment located forward of the cockpit and in open communication therewith and with a bow deck covering the bow compartment. The bow deck has a transversely centered hatch opening connecting with the cockpit. A pair of doors are hinged to the bow deck at opposite sides of the hatch opening on fore and aft axes for movement between closed positions jointly covering the opening and open positions at the sides of the opening. A ladder is provided. A frame hinges the ladder to the boat on a transverse axis and transversely centered in the bow compartment for forward swinging movement of the ladder outwardly through the opening to a position depending from the bow of the boat. A windshield extends transversely across the rear portion of the bow desk and has its side ends directed rearwardly and pivoted to the boat on a common axis for raising the windshield rearwardly and upwardly about the common axis. When the doors are opened and the ladder is forward and the windshield is raised there is a clear path for passenger travel between the cockpit and the ladder.
A SECOND EXAMPLE, U.S. Pat. No. 3,285,367, Issued on Nov. 15, 1966, to Brodie teaches an emergency boat ladder assembly comprising a mounting bracket having a flat base portion adapted for attachment at a lower portion of a boat transom above water level. The bracket also includes lower and upper outwardly generally horizontally projecting portions. The lower projecting portion includes a pivot support mechanism adapted for connection with an upper end portion of a ladder to provide for swinging movement of the ladder in a vertical plane to a lower operative substantially vertically position and through approximately 180 degrees to an upper storage position adjacent and substantially parallel with the transom. The upper projecting portion includes a latch mechanism adapted for releasable connection with a ladder in its upper storage position. A ladder has a pair of vertical side rails and at least one horizontal rung connected therebetween at lower portions thereof. The ladder side rails being so spaced apart laterally as to receive the lower projecting portion at all times and to receive both the lower and the upper projecting portions of the mounting bracket therebetween when the ladder is swung to its upper storage position. The upper end portions of the side rails being pivotally connected with the lower projection portion on the bracket. The ladder being of such length that the rung thereon is disposed substantially beneath water level with the ladder in its lower operative position. The ladder being disposed beneath the upper edge of the transom and above the lower edge thereof when the ladder is in its upper or storage position.
A THIRD EXAMPLE, U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,742, Issued on Mar. 11, 1975, to Gale et al. teaches a single shaft ladder for use particularly by SCUBA divers in boarding small boats and a mounting bracket for mounting the ladder in angularly inclined relationship to the transom of a small boat with a top end portion of the ladder extending above and inwardly of the transom and with a bottom end portion extending in a downwardly divergent direction with respect to the transom into the water. The ladder has sets of opposite, laterally extending rungs spaced along the bottom portion of the ladder and a single rung extending laterally from one side of the upper portions of the ladder adjacent its top end to provide a handle for the person boarding the boat.
A FOURTH EXAMPLE, U.S. Pat. No. 4,153,137, Issued on May 8, 1979, to Johnson teaches a boat ladder which can be in the form of a complete ladder or a kit for mounting a ladder on a boat. The ladder preferably includes two or more ladder sections which can be readily connected and disassembled and easily stowed. Two mounting brackets are designed for use on a variety of gunwhales of boats. The lower section of the ladder has two threaded mounting pins which are adjustably held in the brackets to level the ladder and the pins can be easily separated from the mounting brackets when the ladder is not in use. The mounting pins are also pivoted so as to be swung out of the way along the rails of the ladder, when not in use.
A FIFTH EXAMPLE, U.S. Pat. No. 4,365,689, Issued on Dec. 28, 1982, to Dever teaches tiltable, portable, pivotable marine type ladder which is horizontally oriented in its normal position and tiltable to a vertical position by the application of an initial force in the vertical downward direction. The ladder having two parallel struts capable of being secured to a marine structure, such as a floating dock, and having counterweight balances at the top of two support members pivotably connected to the struts. When one exits the ladder, the slight movement of the water activates the ladder such that it reverts to its original horizontal position.
A SIXTH EXAMPLE, U.S. Pat. No. 6,021,733, Issued on Feb. 8, 200, to Jaramillo, Sr. teaches a retractable ladder assembly for a watercraft that has a rotatably mounted ladder which is attached to the craft by brackets. The ladder is pivotably mounted to the brackets. There is a plate biased to engage and rotatably retract the ladder from a user position to a storage position is also attached to the bracket. The bias is provided by a torsion spring. In one embodiment, the bracket mounts to the top of a rear platform of a boat and in another embodiment the ladder mounts to the underside of the rear platform of the boat. In both embodiments, the ladder may have a telescoping second ladder which retracts, due to gravity, when the torsion spring rotates the ladder assembly to a sufficient amount above the horizontal. There is also a stopper mechanism for each embodiment.
It is apparent now that numerous innovations for boat ladder devices have been provided in the prior art that are adequate for various purposes. Furthermore, even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, accordingly, they would not be suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described.